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The Davises » of Truro & Generation 1 - Benjamin Betsey Rowe Davis Generation 2 - Benjamin Davis, 2nd Webb James Davis Ebenezer Lombard Davis Betsey Davis Myrick & Census - 1790, 1800, 1810 1820 Abbreviated Hinckley Genealogy Appendises mem Christmas 1998 Dear Family, I worked on this project from the first of this year until the weather turned warm. Then I refused to waste nice days in front ofa computer. I think it is quite an accomplishment, and I learned how truly satisfying it was to sift through ancient data. I emerged with flesh to put on the bare bones of names and dates ofour ancestors. I ordered a CD which had the Truro, MA church records and vital records from 1709 - 1849. For some it would be as interesting as reading the phone book; but, by picking out the names I was looking for, interesting stories revealed themselves. Parts ofthis booklet are repetitive. I need to repeat data to lodge it in my mind. Genealogy is always a work in progress, and I’ve learned new things since the bulk of it was written. The new material follows this page. I owe a great deal to our third-cousin-once-removed (fourth cousin to generation 7) Richard Ebens of Hudson, MA. His great-great grandfather (Benjamin Davis) and our great-grandfather (Joshua Hinckley Davis, Sr.) were brothers. He is tenacious, accurate, and diplomatically restrains my exuberance when I might find something exciting and go off in the wrong direction. MA Richard began to trace his lineage about five years ago. He wrote to the Truro, Historical Society for information, and they gave him my name as a source. Instant relative!! He and his wife were my gracious hosts when at last I made my “pilgrimage” to Cape Cod in November of this year. I saw the graves of many ancestors, saw the church where so many were baptized, married, and buried. I touched the timbers and peered inside the Truro Academy founded by Joshua H. Davis, Sr. in the 1840’s. It is now an art gallery in Wellfleet. It had been “flaked” (disassembled), moved, and reassembled. I have lots ofideas for future projects. I hope I live long enough to complete them. I have the unique position, for a genealogist, to have too much, rather than not enough, information to work with. However, those little bits I need to wrap something up seem to be elusive. And now, I formally introduce you to the first known generations of Davises who lived in Truro, Cape Cod, Massachusetts for a little more than 100 years. Betsey Rowe Davis was born there in 1747. Joshua H. Davis, Sr. followed just about everyone else in the family to MA Somerville, in the 1850’s. A future project will tell you why they left. Happy reading, Merry Christmas, and love from Sister/Aunt Susan NAMES!! NAMES!! NAMES!! Untiljust this year I almost went nuts keeping all ofthe Benjamins, Betseys, and Ebenezers straight. Why, oh why, couldn’t they have used a little originality and introduced a new name now and then? The family only conformed to the tradition ofthe time. Instead ofthese repetitive names being road blocks, I figured out they were road maps instead. All names point to the past. They honored their mothers and fathers. They symbolically replaced deceased family members - even siblings. When the first Benjamin Davis named his middle children James Webb Davis and Ebenezer Lombard Davis, I blessed his name. Middle names were rare, and Truro records either referred to these men by all three names or used their middle initials. It set them apart wonderfully. These names also add dimension to Benjamin, 1st. He was a mariner during the time ofthe Revolutionary War, most likely captured by the British, and probably died in one oftheir prisons. Harassment of Americans sailors was commonplace and intolerable. Americans were underthe rule ofEngland. Only royalty had more than one name. Most colonists had one name, too, except for those brazen enough to defy the crown and give their children more than one name. We know who these two sons were named for, but usually only the Christian name was used. Maybe this is happenstance, but it could also reveal the first Benjamin’s politics. I don’t think he was a Loyalist! The name Lombard is important in our line. Variations on this name include Lambert, Lampert, Lumbard, Lambard, etc. It is all the same family. Standardized spelling did not occur for two centuries after the first Lombard came to this country. Supplementary Information About Benjamin Davis, 2nd who moved to Readfield, Maine during the War of 1812 and bought a farm Benjamin Davis, 2nd left a simple will. He left 1/3 ofhis estate to his wife Eunice Davis. (Eunice Davis was the ’‘Widow Lambert” when Benjamin marriedher. She was his secondwife. Hisfirst wife is the mother ofthe children listedbelow.) He left $2 to his oldest son (1.) Benjamin and the other 2/3 ofhis estate went to his other children: 2. Jane Atkinson, wife ofDavid Atkinson 3. Sally Smith, wife ofSamuel Smith 4. Ruth Dudley, wife ofJoseph Dudley 5. Betsey Gordon, wife of James Gordon 6. Mary Dyar, wife ofAzor Dyar 7. Sabrina Davis 8. Ebenezer Davis His son Benjamin was deeded the farm, and that was probably why he only got $2. John Lambert, merchant, was the executor ofthe will. He may have been Eunice’s brother or son from her first marriage. Thp ©avisos Truro of Th£ G^n^ration: 1st Benjamin Bavis & ©ptspy Rowp With <§>upplpmpntary Information Rbout: Cbpnpzpr Lombard & Jamps Wpbb Digitized by the Internet Archive 2017 with funding from in Boston Public Library https://archive.org/details/davisesoftruroOOhans THE 1ST GENERATION BENJAMIN & BETSEY - To understand more about our ancestors Benjamin and Betsey Rowe Davis, we need to explore the life ofa Truro man named Ebenezer Lombard. The surname Lombard will be important later for descendants ofJoshua H. Davis, Sr. and his wife Anna Gross Lombard Davis, but Ebenezer Lombard is not a direct ancestor. However, we need to know about him to flesh out the little we know about Benjamin and Betsey who are the earliest Davises we can trace. Nearly 300 years after the fact, no one knows for sure what happened, but by piecing together the stark facts recorded in the Truro Vital Records, Church Records and Cemetery Records, time frames emerge. With some guesswork and a little imagination, the following may have occurred. An explanation ofthe term “covenant owner” will clarify a church custom ofthe time. At the December 29, 1725, church meeting "...it was proposed to the chh whether Adult Persons Owning their Baptismal Covenant, and putting themselves under the watch and Government of the chh shuld have their children Baptisd tho they thro fears did not come up to full communion Answered in the Affir. and Voted to be the Practice for the future the chh having had six weeks consideration before ye vote" For three ancestors, covenant ownership (under the watch and government ofthe church) and the baptism ofthe oldest child took place on the same day. For Ebenezer Lombard there is a two-day lapse. What we know about Ebenezer Lombard follows. EBENEZER LOMBARD 1705 - 1767 March 12, 1705 Bom March 4, 1716 Jedediah Lombard (his father) is admitted to full communion with the church (membership) March 11, 1716 Ebenezer is baptized (Brothers and sister - Solomon, James, Sarah and Lewis - are baptized at the same time.) April 15, 1716 Hannah Lewis Lombard (his mother) is admitted to full communion June 1 1, 1727 Bethiah Mayo is admitted as a member June 15, 1727 Ebenezer is married to Bethiah Mayo July 28, 1727 Son John is baptized (and must have died shortly afterward) 1 July 30, 1727 Ebenezer is listed as “Covenant Owner” in church records August 3, 1728 Son John is bom September 9, 1748 John dies “in his 21st year” September 23, 1733 Daughter Sarah is baptized December 20, 1735 Sarah dies “in her 3rd year” June 27, 1736 Daughter Bethiah is bom July 4, 1736 Bethiah is baptized June 10, 1739 Daughter Sarah is baptized June, 1739 Sarah dies “3 weeks” September 12, 1739 Father Jedediah Lombard dies April 25, 1743 Mother Hannah Lombard dies October 4, 1764 Daughter Bethiah marries James Webb. She is 28 years old. June 7, 1767 Ebenezer made his peace with the church and by church vote is restored to his former standing as a member in full communion. June 19, 1767 Ebenezer dies July 12, 1767 Daughter Bethiah Lombard Webb is admitted to full communion January l, 1769 Widow Bethiah Lombard is admitted to full communion Ebenezer’s adult life did not appear to be happy. His oldest brother Solomon graduated from Harvard College in 1723 and became Judge Solomon Lombard. His younger brother Lewis Lombard was prominent and the first ofmany other Lewis Lombards in generations to come. Massachusetts tax records indicate Ebenezer, the middle child, was a tiller ofthe soil. He and Bethiah had five children in 1 1 years, only one ofwhom, Bethiah, 2nd, lived to adulthood. John, 1st, must have died shortly after his July 28, 1727, baptism. Notice the flurry ofactivity in mid-1727. Bethiahjoins the church four days before she and Ebenezer are married. A baby named John is baptised on July 28, 1727 - six weeks later. Ebenezer becomes a covenant owner two days after that. John, 2nd, bom the next year, died at age 20. Bethiah, 2nd, married James Webb in 1764 when she was 28 years old - much older than brides ofthe era. The spacing ofEbenezer’s children and absence ofchildren after the second Sarah’s birth in 1739 (Ebenezer is only 34 and Bethiah a little younger) may lead one to 2 believe there were many other unsuccessful pregnancies. His two surviving children number well below the average ofseven or more for that time. Shortly after Sarah, 2nd, died, Ebenezer’s father died. Did Ebenezer rail at God and sever ties with the church? It appears so. On his deathbed he made peace with the church and died 12 days later. About 1764, probably earlier, two fellows named James Webb and Benjamin Davis came to Truro. Benjamin is said to have been “a youth”, “a boy” and “young” in the family history and other sources. This would make him younger than 21 upon arrival in Truro. James Webb must have been older. He married Ebenezer’s daughter on October 24, 1764. Bethiah is 28 years old. As Ebenezer’s only surviving child, was she “kept home” as long as possible? Ebenezer “gained a son” by her marriage but did not live to see his first grandchild (and namesake) bom in 1770. James and Bethiah Webb apparently had the same misfortune bearing children as did her parents. The first baby, Ebenezer Lombard Webb, bom six years after his parents’ marriage, died shortly after his private baptism on January 14, 1770. Next came another Ebenezer Lombard Webb, Bethiah, 3rd, and James, Jr. JAMES WEBB We know the following about James Webb: (1) He showed up in Truro in 1764 or earlier. (2) He married Bethiah Lombard on Oct. 4, 1764. (3) They had four known children: Ebenezer Lombard Webb bom & died January, 1770 Ebenezer Lombard Webb baptized October 27, 1771 Bethiah, 3rd, Webb baptized September 19, 1773 James Webb, Jr. baptised June 9, 1776, died in Carolina 1800 ofsmallpox July 12, 1767 “Bethiah Wife ofJames Webb” is admitted to full communion (one month after her father Ebenezer made his peace with the church and died) January 1, 1769 “Widow Bethiah Lombard” is admitted to full communion (18 months after her husband’s death) 3 1771 tax evaluation records for the State ofMassachusetts show James Webb owning a house, tillable acreage, farm animals, and hay. He inherited Ebenezer Lombard’s estate. (Benjamin Davis is also listed in this tax record. He owns nothing, but he lives with or near James Webb. The^re no indications he and Betsey were anything but very poor all their married lives.) The Webb name will soon disappear from Truro. Possibly, James Webb was captured by the British with Benjamin Davis and died a prisoner ofwar. James Webb, Jr., though, is listed in the town’s history as dying ofsmallpox “in Carolina” in 1800. Was his presence there a coincidence, or did he have reason to be there? BENJAMIN DAVIS Another dimension to the story ofEbenezer Lombard is our ancestor Benjamin Davis. He came to Truro as a youth from Snow Hill, Maryland and disappeared during the Revolutionary War. For more than 100 years, it has been believed that Benjamin was a native ofSnow Hill by using the Ishmael Davis will as evidence. This connection is questionable, as the Benjamin named in the will bought and sold property in Maryland many years after “our Benjamin” disappeared from Truro. It is possible, but not likely, he chose to desert his Truro family, return to Maryland during a dangerous period in our history, and have a second family there. Benjamin was more apt to have been captured by the British who harassed the Cape Cod coast and took many prisoners during the time ofthe Revolution. Benjamin “went to sea in the time ofthe Revolution”, so it is likely he was captured aboard a vessel. Another version says he “left his home during the time ofthe Revolution and no intelligence was ever learned ofhis fate.” He may have died on a prison ship. Benjamin may well have “come from Snow Hill” to Truro, but Snow Hill may only have been a stopover for a time. He may have come there from another place. Consider this In the book Colonial Soldiers ofthe South by Murtie June Clark, the : names Benjamin Davis and James Webb are listed in the muster and pay rolls ofColonel George Gabriel Powell’s Battalion ofthe South Carolina Militia in the 1759 Cherokee Expedition. James Webb is listed as a private in Capt. Samuel Butler’s company, October 6, 1759 - June 10, 1760. Benjamin Davis is listed as a private in Capt. John McCant’s company - same dates. He would have been in his teens, but thj s was not unusual. To be sure, Benjamin Davis and James Webb are not unusual names, but consider the dates and that both names are recorded in a small, specialized military unit at the same time. Desertions are listed, but these two names are not among them. They may have served their time and left, or they may have deserted at a later date. 4